After feeling the pressure from law enforcement officials from many municipalities, Apple became the first major cell phone manufacturer to incorporate an anti-theft function (activation lock) in its operating system (OS). You may remember that I commented on the cell phone manufacturers and wireless providers resistance to help reduce cell phone theft (Opinion: Why Won’t Wireless Companies Help Stop Cell Phone Thefts). Well kudos to Apple for leading the way and doing the right thing.
Despite the great news, there is a flaw with iOS7 implementation that makes it easy to disable “Find My iPhone”. However, if a criminal thinks your iPhone will be nothing more than a paper weight; this may be enough to prevent the theft anyway. It seems that many law enforcement officials agree and are suggesting that iPhone owners download iOS7 and use the activation lock feature.